New York City’s police commissioner slipped off to the Middle East again last week, marking at least his fourth trip abroad since assuming the prestigious post in July. Police Commissioner Edward Caban attended the United Arab Emirates’ World Governments Summit in Dubai with a top aide to New York City Mayor Eric Adams. The trip came after members of the NYPD reportedly traveled to the Middle Eastern country to participate in a training competition alongside a Chechen military group fighting in Ukraine on behalf of Russia — a move that alarmed security experts, Politico reports. Caban and Joel Eisdorfer, a senior Adams adviser were pictured presenting H.H. Lt. General Sheikh Saif bin Zayed Al Nahyan, deputy prime minister and minister of the interior, with a plaque alongside other UAE government officials,.
The group discussed relations between the UAE and the U.S. and ways to enhance cooperation in security and law enforcement. A New York City spokesperson declined to say who paid for Caban’s and Eisdorfer’s airfare and lodging. In October, Caban quietly visited Qatar for a security conference, while back home, the police department was on high alert for global violence stemming from the war in Gaza. In January, Caban flew to the Dominican Republic to sign an agreement stipulating the NYPD would protect polling stations in New York City where expats would be voting in Dominican elections. This month, Caban was in Jamaica, where he met with the prime minister. The New York City police department maintains a network of officers posted around the world — including in the UAE and in Qatar — as part of a liaison program funded by the New York City Police Foundation, a nonprofit that supports the department.